This romance book was really sweet. And it had real life experiences. Overall I think the storytelling of these characters went through complicated situations and a realistic ending!

This book is very well written and organized - I really enjoyed the back-and-forth perspectives and it provided a well-rounded story. This slow-burn story was just a little too slow for my taste and I found myself just wanting them to get on with it many times and losing interest. I normally read a book in 1 or 2 sittings and this book took me well over a week to get through. If you’re a lover of slow-burn romances I’d encourage you to give this one a read.

this one is hard. i really liked a lot of it, but kind of disliked enough that overall it fell a wee bit flat. i quite liked cleo. i loved salvation island. i loved all of the side characters. i liked mack well enough from cleo's point of view - but really, really, really disliked his point of view. i don't know if it was the narrator or just the fact that he was married - separated - and so obviously still hung up on his ex that just rubbed me the wrong way. overall, not mad i read it, but didn't leave me with warm and fuzzies.

I love basically everything Josie Silver writes, and this was no different! Cleo is an online magazine columnist whose column is all about finding love. Being that she is still single and just about to turn thirty years old she feels like her life isn't going in the direction she thought it would be at this time. Her boss and good friend decides to send her to Salvation Island off the coast of Ireland for a self-coupling which she will include in her latest column she's writing. Self-coupling is basically marrying yourself and putting yourself first, not only in your mind but in your heart as well. Cleo, dreading her family's surprise party, decides the solitude may be just what she's looking for.

There is one problem though. When she arrives at her rented cottage she isn't alone. Mack, an American, has also rented the cabin. Neither will budge and neither will leave. To make matters worse the ferry won't be back around for another week so they are basically stuck together until that time. Will all this petty bickering lead to romance? My lips are sealed!

Such a sweet story. I loved the island atmosphere and I loved the community of people that reside there. Every single character had their own charm and their sense of loyalty to one another was absolutely heartwarming. My only niggle came with the self-coupling. I did eye roll my way through her wedding ceremony to herself. For some it may have seemed empowering but for me it was kind of silly. I don't think any women should feel her life is over if she hasn't found the one by thirty years of age so I get what the author was trying to do but it just didn't work for me. That being said the rest of the book was a winner and tears came to my eyes on a few occasions. I also really enjoyed the ending because it wasn't that saccharine sweet fairy tale ending. It was a little imperfect, a lot hopeful, and entirely realistic.

One Night on the Island brings you Cleo, who needs a break from work, and Mac, an American looking for a break from life. Set on a small, remote island with little accommodations Cleo and Mac are thrown together because of an unfortunate mix up.

I had to DNF this book at 20%. Cleo's attitude was poor - she was so angry at the world. Maybe there was a reason for her anger but I didn't know what it was and it was taking too long to find out. She complained about anything and everything.

Mac was technically still married and I could see the writing on the wall with this story and that made me feel icky. Overall this one just wasn't for me after I enjoyed two of Silver's other books.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the story! At first, I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but it was great! You will definitely laugh, cry, and have a sudden desire to find out where this magical island is located! I recommend this as a great summer read. There are a couple of semi-steamy moments in the book, but tastefully done in my option and fairly clean!

I loved The Two Lives of Lydia Bird and was eager to read this one.. I enjoyed all aspects of this story: great pace, eccentric cast of characters, gorgeous setting and a bit of a different love story.

I absolutely LOVED Lydia Bird, so I had really high hopes for Josie Silver's newest one. Ultimately, it wasn't really the book for me, but I'm having trouble putting my finger on exactly why I had a difficult time connecting with it/truly getting into it. I want to say that part of it didn't feel realistic to me, but so much more about Lydia Bird wasn't realistic, so it can't really be that. I think I just felt a little bit bored.

It's a sweet story about Cleo, a dating columnist who's about to turn 30 and is still single (I should say that books featuring 30-year-old women who are omg going to die that they're single drive me crazy, so this bothered me a bit from the start... though we do get a bit more explanation later in the book and Cleo's fears seem a bit more realistic I suppose). Her editor decides to send her to a remote island where she'll connect with herself and ultimately will "self couple" in a mock wedding ceremony. The only problem? When she arrives at the island, someone is living in the cabin her boss had booked for her. Of course, he's incredibly hot, but also pretty annoying. Enemies to lovers trope, anyone?

The book just didn't feel special or unique enough for me. Again, it's a sweet story, but nothing about it wow-ed me or made me feel like I was reading something new or memorable. If you like light romances and the enemies to lovers trope, you'll likely enjoy this one. I was just hoping for a little bit more!

This was a highly anticipated book for me, but unfortunately didn't quite live up to the hype I'd built for it.

I absolutely LOVED Josie's writing and was immediately engaged. Really beautiful, lyrical prose. Individually, I appreciated the characters' growth and development. I love the idyllic setting and cast of characters. It wasn't however, quite the sweeping romance I was hoping for. The chemistry between Mack and Cleo wasn't established enough, and I just couldn't get past the wife-at-home aspect of the situation. It was kind of hard to root for them. Overall, a solid three-star read.

A thank you to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for the copy in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

I loved One Day In December, so I was ecstatic to be approved for this one. It didn't hold my attention though; I DNF'ed at 15%.

This was such a wonderful story and I wanted to just keep reading and reading - definitely one where I was sad when it was over. I loved so much about this book - the setting of Salvation Island in Ireland, the female protagonist’s journey of loving and accepting herself, the relationship between the two main characters and their slow burn but most of all I loved the incredible side characters who made this story so special. The writing was light and easy to read but Silver’s description of the island, it’s landscapes and it’s characters were so vivid I felt like I was right there with Cleo and Mack the whole time. Can’t wait to read more of her work!

Thank you, NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a little hard for me to review because, as you might notice from the date on this review, it took me quite a while to read. It may have been the slow burn, or just a case of a reading slump. Either way, One Night on the Island might have come to me at the wrong time. That’s not to say I didn’t like it, but that I may have liked it a lot more if I had read it at a different time.

Josie Silver does write with a lot of charm and the setting she created of the island and its community was beautifully crafted. Cleo’s journey to “self-couple” took a while for me to fully appreciate, but once she truly connected with herself, I found myself wanting to move to a remote island and find the strength and wholeness she found. Especially if I had someone like Mack to capture the beauty I find within, and maybe even to anchor me a little so that I don’t drift too far off by myself.

I love books that bring the main characters together while allowing for plenty of time for them to work on themselves apart. They’re there for each other, but they don’t use each other to heal. So while I went into this story thinking it would be more of a romance, I didn’t end the story feeling too disappointed that it was more about healing and finding yourself. I do wish I wasn’t quite so confused about what to expect out of the story. But I think that falls more into the “read this at the wrong time” category- I needed something not necessarily predictable, but perhaps more clearly defined. I needed a romance that wasn’t quite as unsure, quiet or slow-moving, even though it was the right type of romance for that story.

If I had gone into reading this with different expectations and a different mindset, this may have been a four or even five star book for me. I absolutely loved the community and could read many more stories set on this island with these characters.

Even though I was pretty sure I knew where this book was going almost immediately, I was surprised by what a beautiful journey it took me on. I found myself getting inexplicably emotional at parts of Cleo and Mack's individual stories, and it is written in such a way that I didn't favor one over the other. I wanted what was best for each of them, even if it meant that I, the reader, would be heartbroken.

I absolutely loved the cast of characters from Salvation Island, and I can only hope that Josie Silver decides to expand on some of them. Each of them was so unique and special, that I know I would read more about any of them in a heartbeat.

And no, it actually didn't end up where I thought it would! It ended up somewhere even better.

This novel is filled with humor, heart, friendship, and love. The character of Cleo Wilder, she’s a writer for the top women’s magazine in the UK and approaching her 30th birthday. She writes about dating and finding the perfect partner. However, since that hasn’t happened for her, she has a new assignment from her boss. Cleo isn’t quite sure what all the assignment will entail, but she has time to figure it out, and enjoy some solo time. The other main character is Mack Sullivan, an American photographer, who is also headed to Salvation Island to have some time alone and do some soul searching, discovering his roots. What neither character realizes is that they are double-booked for the same (one-room) cabin, the Otter Lodge. Neither one of them will budge, both expecting the other to find different accommodations or take the boat back to the mainland. This was quite the journey. Both go through individual journeys while also going on a journey together. This was a book that should be savored and read slowly. Life, you never know what is going to come your way, or how things will change over time. This book is about change, taking a break, looking at your life, taking chances, accepting (and loving) yourself, amongst other things. If you're looking for a lovely story of life, love, and all of the complications that brings, then this novel is a perfect delight.

Thank you to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books and NetGalley.

Josie Silver is one of my favorite romance authors - her books are unpredictable with all the best elements of this genre. Cleo is sent from London to a remote Irish island for a work assignment. Things quickly derail, however, when she arrives at the small one-room cottage and Mack, a handsome American, is already there making himself at home. There seems to be no solution for this double-booking issue when both Cleo and Mack stubbornly refuse to give up their time in the cottage. With the small space and the welcoming nature of the island and its people, Clea and Mack soon develop a deep relationship that can only last a week, both agreeing to end it when they leave the island.

One Night on the Island is a romance about finding your “flamingo,” but also falling in love with yourself. I absolutely loved how there was the romantic element between Cleo and Mack, but that the focus of the book was finding yourself, and what it means to sacrifice for those you love. This was a wonderful and unpredictable read. Josie Silver cannot disappoint!

#OneNightOnTheIsland:

“I cup my own heart in my own hands today. It’s okay to be reckless with your internal organs in your twenties, but I’m thirty now and need more careful curation”.

Josie Silver has always had a way with words. I think she’s wonderful at telling a story with real people and delving deeper into their biggest insecurities in order to grow. I always love the self love journey her characters go on. While I enjoyed that part of the story, the romance was a bit of a miss for me.

I love that it, again, always has good banter, but there’s serious subject matter in there we cannot ignore. Her characters are hurt, and flawed, and real. When she gives the analogy of their relationship as an earthquake with a small fissure, classic.

However, as much as I adored the characters, I did not enjoy their tift on the island. It felt like a “eh, that’ll do donkey” close proximity instead of this relationship that shared a special moment or made the other feel “like they swallowed stars”. Give me the self discovery without the one night, and I would have enjoyed it more.

Overall, another wonderful journey of acceptance and self-love. The romance bit was a miss, but the ending wrapped up nicely in a bow. Thank you so much RandomHouse for the gifted copy! One Night On The Island is out Feb. 15th!

Sadly, this one did just not do it for me.

I want to give Josie Silver credit in making dimensional characters that have so much more going on for them than just falling in love, but in this case I think it was too unrealized.

Mack and Cleo are both booked to stay in the same cottage on the island, and I'm not sure if JS was trying to push an enemies to lovers storyline, but both of them were being absolutely childish. I think the biggest issue though, was the fact that it was supposed to be Cleo's solo vacation to learn how to cope with being single while turning 30, and Mack's getaway while he and his wife are in a break. Instead, we got them agreeing to be friends with benefits and of course, they fall in love.


I just could not get on board with Mack being barely separated while pursuing Cleo. JS even added in a storyline that Mack's wife called to tell him she had a boyfriend, so it was okay for him to have one too? But then cut to a month later she's crying that she will never love anyone as much as she loves him? Mack and Cleo just seemed doomed from the start.

I am also SO OVER, people selling romcoms as a love story of the character "learning to just love themselves" while simultaneously finding the love of their live. It's either one or the other, it can not be both!

Overall, this was a really slow burn, with characters I didn't really like, and a lot of filler drama. I sadly say, this would be a no from me.

I want to start this review by saying that I have an issue with characters that are emotionally immature. Clear as day, this book starts by saying that the female lead is about to be 30 years old, and still she behaves as if she still was 21. I had trouble getting past that. Luckily, Josie Silver’s beautiful writing style came through, as always, and saved my day. There was something compelling me to continue reading, and I am so glad I did.

Let’s talk about the bravery of leaving your comfort zone and accepting an assignment far from home, to a place you’ve never even heard of, and having to stay there for a prolonged time… to some of us that can sound like heaven. Leaving all responsibilities behind and just focusing on one simple thing. For other people that is terrifying as hell. And with a good cause.

Cleo embarks on this journey with an open mind. Trying to make the best of it since this wasn’t even her idea. Her boss is to blame. She gets to a secluded lodge and finds out that the guy that (to her was super rude) is also staying in the lodge because of family connections. Talk about an inconvenience. There are no more boats coming since the weather is horrible and it’s obviously not safe for anyone, so they have no other choice than to coexist with each other and survive the week that takes the boat to come back and no one else on the island has room for them.

You see where this is going… *smirks*

The tension in that lodge is palpable. So thick you can cut it with a knife. Stubborn as hell, they are determined to be the LAST MAN STANDING. Someone needs to go and they are sure that it will not be them. What do you do when there is nowhere to go, thanks to the bad weather, you are in a secluded spot with someone you don’t even know? Exactly, you get to know them. You learn their quirks and rhythm.

Once they’re past the passive-aggressiveness, the animosity, and the pettiness, they actually start developing some kind of relationships and understanding with each other. They evolve. They help each other grow. Let me clarify that the boat doesn’t come for them. So, they have more than enough time. It speaks volumes how the community embraced them as if they had always been part of the island. They made them feel like family.

Everyone had such a good relationship with each other. It was absolutely wonderful being able to read such a beautiful description of everyone and everything. It made me want to be there too. Silver states that this island she beautifully describes is a figment of her imagination. Ladies and gentlemen, I declare that I want to live inside her head.

This book brought tears to my eyes. Tears of sadness and tears of joy. I adored this book and what bothered me at the beginning, seemed meaningless at the end when I saw the person Cleo became.

Take a chance on this book, for goodness sake.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this book.

One Night On the Island by Josie Silver is a delightful story about finding yourself by leaving your life temporarily. Cleo writes about relationships and being single for a popular women’s magazine in London. She ends up on the island aptly named Salvation on assignment to “marry herself.” There is a miscommunication and her cottage rental is double-booked with her reservation and the reservation of an American man named Mack. It being a small island, there is no option but for them to share the remote cottage as there are no other empty beds and the next boat departs a week later. Mack is a photographer who has separated from his wife and is in need of healing while away from his family. They start out as adversaries but quickly develop a deep friendship. They’re both a little lost and searching for something. The story went on a little long, but I loved that Cleo and Mack were realistic and flawed characters. I really appreciated the idea of going away to find peace and silence since so much of our modern lives are frenetically paced. Surely, solitude is something we’re missing in our daily lives. I also loved the distinct personalities and community among the island’s residents. There is a romance, but it goes a lot deeper into Cleo and Mack’s characters. I really enjoyed getting to know both of them. A very enjoyable read about reflection and connection.

Thank you Random House / Ballantine Books and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to net galley for an ARC of this book. I’ve read and enjoyed Josie Silver’s two previous books, and when I read the premise for this one, I was slightly disappointed because it sounded “fluffy.” I was wrong! It was a great read. I enjoyed the perspective of the two different characters, and I love how the setting, Salvation Island, also became a character in this book. You’ll not be disappointed!!